- The Shaw’s production of this contemporary American play finds meaning in the mundane -

Niagara-on-the-Lake, ON (July 11, 2017) —Meg Roe directs the hypnotic Middletown, written by Pulitzer-nominated and Drama Desk Award-winning playwright Will Eno, as an intimate experience shared by actors and audience. The Canadian premiere of Middletownbegins previews on July 13 at the Shaw Festival’s Jackie Maxwell Studio Theatre.

Veteran Shaw actors Gray Powell and Moya O’Connell star in Middletown, which is a series of intersecting vignettes in an ordinary suburban town where fears, hopes and dreams erupt through the seemingly banal details of everyday life.

The Shaw’s production invites the audience to be a part of the staging of Middletown by completely removing the backstage area and setting it in the round. The actors, set pieces and props transition seamlessly between the audience and playing space. Camellia Koo’sminimalist set and costume design emphasize the simple beauty of everyday objects, which appear and reappear throughout the performance, allowing design elements to have their own story arc.

Lighting design by Kevin Lamotte brings a constellation of stars to Middletown through fibre optic lights that surround the audience. Alessandro Julia­ni’soriginal music and sound design blends physical and digital instrumentation to create a sense of familiarity and mystery, mirroring the ways that Middletown’scharacters contemplate life’s great mysteries in the most ordinary of circumstances.

Middletown is on stage at the Jackie Maxwell Studio Theatre (10 Queen’s Parade, Niagara-on-the-Lake) from July 13 to September 10 (opening July 30).

This production is proudly sponsored by PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP. The Jackie Maxwell Studio Theatre is sponsored by Paradigm Capital Inc.

Direct bus service from Toronto to Niagara-on-the-Lake on the Shaw Express began April 5. Patrons can choose to come for one day or stay for the weekend with a round trip costing $25. A ticket to a 2017 Shaw Festival performance is required to access this service.

Tickets for the 2017 Festival season and Shaw Express are available through the Box Office at 1-800-511-SHAW and online at www.shawfest.com.

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About the Shaw Festival

The Shaw Festival celebrates the life and spirit of Bernard Shaw by creating theatre that is as entertaining and provocative as Shaw himself. For more information, please visit www.shawfest.com.